Sudokuaholics Anonymous 10

I was just about to do more bush hogging (only 15 acres left) then mow the lawn (I mowed the lawn around IH's office yesterday after the dental appt.) but a thunderstorm just descended. I won't work in a metal tractor or on a metal riding mower, when there's lightning visible on 3 sides of me. That means that I get to spend the day making apple pies.... from my own apples. They freeze well in the uncooked state, and you add ~10 minutes to the baking time when baking from frozen.

Theresa!!! May this be the start of the best year of your life.

Was I gone long enough for you to even miss me? I am moved, spent first night here, already have my phone, internet and TV installed. Way over 2/3 of the boxes emptied and put away already, I am amazed what 4 of us were able to accomplish!

I will check back in later when I have time to read, Just had to send out a GOOD MORNING, and say I missed you, even for one day.

Hugs to each of you, with extras, till later.

Great news, MizT!!!! That was fast!

Excellent MizT, good going. Enjoy the next stage of your life.

Oh Happy Day MizT!!!! Not only have you moved, but gotten so much done AND you sound simply marvelous....We're all happy for you.
And to the rest of my dear ones....hello, have a wonderful day...and yes, I too feel better..hope you all do. Peace.

My young friend just called me and we chatted for along time. The baby is doing well. My young friend Maxine is having a rougher time than expected. She had to have a cesarean because her pelvis was too small for the baby's shoulders to pass through. She sent me a picture of Holly and herself, which I've just posted on my page. For some reason, the site wouldn't let me post a caption. This is the closest I will ever get to having a grandie.

MizT - That was so quick! I'm so pleased you got moved in OK and that your utilities were connected up so quickly. Now starts the next phase of your life. Enjoy it!
Heidi - I noticed the new header on the page last night, it definitely wasn't there earlier in the day. Looks nice.
Theresa - hope you're having a Happy Birthday!
Jane has posted something a bit more positive on easy and on FB. I do hope they fit in all the good times possible in the time Jaime has left.
Love and hugs all around!

Heidi - it was a different picture yesterday. Maybe we're to be treated to a new one daily??

I'll head over to Easy in a minute.
It looks like I'm getting another dog tomorrow, and it's not a Collie. Oliver is a Boxer. The wonderful neighbors who are in the middle of moving (Diane left for Florida on Sunday, and Wayne is here for 3 more days to supervise the movers and for the auction of farm and horse equipment on Friday), and who gave me the donkey PJ, have 3 dogs. Two are going with them because they're tiny and old (they're going to a retirement village with a small yard) but Oliver is too rambunctious for the place. They had found someone who wanted Oliver, so that wasn't going to be a problem. Oliver went to his new home 4 days ago. Today the lady who took him called and said that her landlord won't let her keep Oliver after all. So they called me and asked if I would (PLEASE????) take him. I said yes.... what's the difference between 18 and 19 dogs, after all? I just hope the Collies accept him. They can be snobbish with other non-collie breeds.

Yesterday I just had a message from the baby's father. He didn't mention anything about the cesarean... just that mother and daughter were doing well. Men can be truly oblivious.

Hi folks.
Beautiful weather in down town Melbourne so I'm not hanging around.

Hi all - just back from Sydney. We drove there so it was a long time in the car but lovely to see our beautiful countryside green again! We had the most wonderful flight in a helicopter around Sydney Harbour on Saturday - truly magnificent. Friend was the pilot.
Suzy - pls have your kidney function checked with your next blood test. Statins were the start of my problems - supposedly a rare allergy which have no significant side effects. None that you could pick anyway - only show up in a blood test.
MizT - so glad you have finally moved in - hope you enjoy your new home.
Have a lot of reading to do....

Hi, Everyone! Just popping in for a quick read and a few comments.

Suzy, I hope Tahli is soon feeling better and you are able to get a great group photo!

Heidi, I hope the root canal went well and you will soon be scheduled for an epidural! I'll continue reading to see how your friend's daughter and her baby are doing.

Mama, I hope your blah day has been replaced by a better day! I share your thoughts about the upcoming election. With so much discussion about the country's deficit, let's put a reasonable limit on campaign spending and donate the rest to a deficit-reducing fund!

I'm joining Mama in wishing that all those who are under the weather with coughing/colds/sniffles will soon be completely well!

MizT, I hope your move proceeded without a hitch and you find a place for all the necessities you chose to bring with you!

Nola, remember to take care of you and get over your cold. I hope Judy continues to show improvement now that she is back at home!

I'm sure you'll love your new puppy, Nola! Hopefully it will help reduce the number of snakes you see. I recently read that a high percentage of the world's poisonous snakes are in Australia - and that they are protected. How very frustrating!

Nola, I hope you can find some time for you during the 3 days off! Great idea no ignore the ringing phone! I hope all your errands are productive!

Bean, thanks for letting us know about Jane's comment on Easy! What a difficult time this will be/is for her and Jaime! I hope they will have many good days to share!

Heidi, you are making me salivate as I think about your apple pies. Aren't you glad the storm came so you don't need to do more bush hogging or lawn mowing today?

MizT, I am truly impressed with how much you were able to accomplish and how smoothly your move went! I hope your tummy is feeling much better!

Heidi, I hope your friend Maxine is recovering well. Does she have anyone to help her when she gets home? I understand there are some restrictions after a Caesarian.

I hope Oliver the boxer will be accepted well by the collies and make a good transition to your home, Heidi!

Midge, your helicopter ride around Sydney sounds wonderful! I'm so glad you enjoyed it.

My early morning is catching up with me. I need to hit the hay soon. (Thursday, Friday and Saturday will also be early days for us. Hopefully we'll get a little extra sleep tomorrow.)

Thinking of all of you and sending warm wishes and healing thoughts for everyone! {{{HUGS}}} and Good Night!

Hi everyone! Just lost a long (and extremely fascinating) post, which I can't remember (of course!)
Well, so sorry to hear the news about Jane and Jaime - thinking of them both. ♥
Heidi, hope you are doing well and not in too much pain. ♥
Nola, hope Judy continues to improve. ♥
Our news - D2 and hubby have bought a house! They move in while we're away ...
D3 has got a new job - she started the day after she got it. Already liking it, and she will have time off for study. :)

Message from Viv in hospital having procedure done on her knee:
'Hi, All going well. Am in day ward overnight as they have a gastro outbreak that overran the Emergency Department and they shut and quarantined 2 wards, They have cancelled all operations for the next 2 days. I did not have to take any painkillers and my leg is on a machine that constantly bends it. Will be fun trying to get some sleep. Lucky I got my procedure done. Say hi to everyone for me. x Viv'

Morning all. Thank you so much for all the birthday wishes - it made the day that much more special!

I have the grandies before and after school today. Plus I have my orthotics fitted this afternoon! I got new runners yesterday and they are so comfie.

I don't exactly know about statin drugs because I've never heard that term before. I am on a drug for cholesterol and I assume it must be a statin drug. I do have to have blood tests every three months, not only for the diabetes, but also for liver function, etc. I see my family doctor next month and I will ask him then. Wouldn't it be kind of ironic that after spending so much money on my feet, it turned out to be the cholesterol drug after all?

Heidi, not only is the baby gorgeous, but the mother is too. I have a feeling that the baby might be spoiled by her new grandma!!!! BTW, how is Jack the dog doing now? Is he pretty well acclimated to your place now?

MizT, so exciting to be in your new place. I just know you are going to enjoy it soooooo much!

Living just north of my American friends and much of our TV being American coverage, please don't get upset if I say I think your elections really drag on and on. I can't begin to imagine how much is spent on campaigns. I like your suggestion, Julie, about putting some money into the deficit. That goes for Canadian politicians as well!

Nola, so glad Judy is feeling better. You are definitely in my thoughts! Take care of yourself, young lady.

Off to grab a coffee and do some more reading.

Judy, where are you off to this time? Will you still be in Melbourne when Mo cones to visit mid-October?

Update on the renos (sorry I havent put up any photos, it's the one function I miss about the computer) - the kitchen tiles went up last night and will be grouted in the next day or so. We were going to do them ourselves, first try for us, but we ran out of time and umph so the fella that's doing our outside work put them up in an hour! I'm sure it would have taken hubby and me a LOT longer :) It all looks great and pretty well finishes the kitchen.
I have finished two walls and the ceiling of my current painting effort, tomorrow will be the feature walls. Fingers crossed it looks good X
In the meantime hubby and I are cleaning up the yard and making many lists. There is not much more that we are going to do inside before the big family gathering, so we can concentrate on the outside for a couple of days, then try to have a day or two to rest up before the actual buying, cooking and hosting of the 'Galah Gala'!

I can't wait to see pictures, Gail. The anticipation is part of the thrill, I think.

This may sound weird, but my back has barely hurt since the root canal. I suspect the infection set off much of the pain, sort of a domino effect. Now that I'm on antibiotics, the whole system is settling down. Besides the back doing better, I'm not sweating all of the time.

I'm having fun making these apple pies. I'm just working slow.... one or two pies a day is a nice pace. I find it hard to believe that 2 dwarf apple trees can produce so many apples. I could make a few dozen pies if I felt so inspired, besides having plenty to snack on and many for my birds to eat as well.

Heidi, pain is a rotten thing and you have had way more than your share. Referred pain os often the worst, hubby almost has anxiety attacks when something is out of kilter, especially if it happens as he is hooking up. Itches do the same thing to him :(

Oliver should be here in about 5 minutes. Something tells me I need to get dressed before my neighbor shows up with him.

I have my marching orders today, I am to SIT, and read, figure out how to navigate my new cable TV, watch TV and play on the computer. NO walking, no unloading boxes. It seems I over did it yesterday, and mostly cause there is so much walking involved in getting purchases to the apartment. The complex has grocery carts for the residents to use, but they are stored in the other building. So here is what I did yesterday, after a morning of unpacking about 7 more boxes, skip over if you want.

We have a FREE table here, where residents can place items they no longer need and want to donate. Residents are welcome to take what they can use, anything not taken in a day is sent on over to the thrift store run by the church to benefit EP. I had a few items, in a box, in my floor, that were in my way. I wanted to take my rolling walker with a seat back to the car, so loaded the box and my purse on the seat and det off for the other building. down the hall in my building, theough the elevator loby, over the cross walk to EPI, past the laundry room, down their hall to elevator to the lobby, through the lobby to other end of EPI to the huge common rooms, and put the items on the table. One lady sitting reading called out, 'What do you have?'. Just a bath mat, a box of stove top stuffing, some plastic wrap and package of crystal light. I turned to leave and half way through the lobby, someone caught up with me saying 'we do not recognize you, when did you move in?' Told her just yesterday and she invited me to come back to where they were playing some table game and meet everyone. So back I go, have to be sociable. We chatted a while and I went on back through the lobby and out to parking lot. got that derned walker folded and put into car. Let me tell you now, if you were really truely disabled, you could NOT fold and loft that heavy thing into the auto hehehe.

Off I go on errands. NO DIRT ROADS, no terrible mess of road construction. (Did I tell you guys they are clearing trees to widen and then tar and gravel 2 of our 3 dirt roads?) I planned to go to go to Aldi's for milk and half and half, to Freds discount store to replace the new fangled picture hanging hooks that got lost, and to the dollar store for red flowers to put in a basket residing on top of my secretary in living room and 4 over the door werath hangers to convert screw in shoe rack and a storage rack to non marking over the door storage, cannot screw into doors here.

Almost lost this, and it is getting long, will post and go on with the saga in another post.

to be continued . . . . .

Exhausting reading it MizT, bet that 'rest' is going to feel wonderful...if it ever comes!

Evening all,
Can't concentrate to read and comment properly so I'm going to be very rude and just say hi and bye!

Thoughts and wishes to vdV if he does a fly by. Sadly I think too many of us understand how horrible he and his family feel right now...

Theresa, happy birthday! I hope I caught you on that other page.

Listen to your orders, MizT!!! Rest today! Things can wait until tomorrow... or the next day... or the day after that.

Oliver isn't here yet. I may have misunderstood the plans. I think Wayne was supposed to pick up Oliver at his very-short-term-home at 9 am, and then come here with him. I was thinking that he was going to be here at 9 am. And I could have slept a little longer. Drat.

All 3 stores are close together, so not a bad trip. BUT on the way I went past a thrift store my sister shops and I decided to stop in. I had just had meds and was feeling pretty good. A waste of time, and a lot of walking, nothing of interest to me there. On to the stores, got everything but the picture hangers, they did not have them. I really wanted those, I could install those and hang a couple of pictures. Now at aldis, you MUST return your cart to the front of store, so more walking for that and by then I was having pain walking. Back to the apartment, all I must gdo is get the groceries in.

OK, good luck finding a convenient parking place. Now into building one, through the lobby to the common room where grocery carts are located. Get my cart, back to auto, load purchases in the cart. Use my cute magnetic door key for the building 2 elevator lobby, up I go to apartment. Unload items, and I see the stack of broken down cardboard boxes. From reports, the designated place for cardboard boxes is just outside where the grocery carts store, I can save an trip later, take them back. so I load them up and off I go, back to building one. As I get out of elevator, see the maintenance man, and ask him how I get to the place to put boxes, OH, he says, and looks out window, usually it is right there outside door, but construction workers have that blocked off, you will have to take them to the dumpster back on the alley, sorry. AAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGH, by now back, heel of left foot , hips and knee are screaming, I was really tempted to just leave the cart right there and go home. BUT the maintenance man could rat me out, and then they would toss me scratching and screaming from residency here hehehe. So, I trek through the parking lot, UP HILL, and then down the alley half a block, pushing a grocery cart, and get to the dumpster. Now most of you know what it is like to lift things up and into a tall dumpster, with a heavy lid I cannot even get all the way up. good thing the boxes are flat and can slide in, if I just have it a crack open. I know I am at the correct dumpster, it is half full of the boxes my BIL took down Monday hehehe. OK, retrace my lagging steps back to store the grocery cart, and limp back to building 2 and into my apartment. I check clock, nope, no pain meds for another hour at the earliest, drats. I get into my recliner with heat pad and volteren topical gel and crash. Hour later when I get up to get meds, I could not walk! My legs would just not move! After a few minutes of flexing and relaxing muscles, I get them going, barely and get my meds and back to my chair.

THAT is why I have orders from both Joy and Edna (sister) that I am to SIT today, rest, no walking, no unpacking boxes hehehe.

If you made it this far, thanks for reading. I am happy to say, I have solved part of the problem. Nothing I can do about the distances within the building, but at Aldi's, they had one of the little old lady pull behind carts, y

here is the rest of post.

If you made it this far, thanks for reading. I am happy to say, I have solved part of the problem. Nothing I can do about the distances within the building, but at Aldi's, they had one of the little old lady pull behind carts, you see them often anywhere older persons can walk to a grocery. They were last week's special, so reduced for sale, and I bought me one! No more walking to get and return grocery cart if I do not make huge purchases at a time!!

BTW, I have already assembled the cart, only took putting back wheels into slot and push till it clicks, easy and i was SITTING while doing it hehehe

More later, it is time for morning coffee, hugs to each of you, with extras.

Oliver will be here in 2 minutes!

Oliver is here and settling in pretty well. He's a bit intimidated by numbers, but there has been no sign of aggression from anybody. He does look quite a bit different than the other dogs. He's a dark brindle, almost black, with a few white markings on chest, toes and muzzle.

I finally got in touch with Pain Management. We've rescheduled the epidural from Nov. 14th to Oct. 8th.

Oh Hiedi, that still is a long time to wait, but heaps better than November. I hope you can find temporary things to help manage the pain untill then. Huge hugs to you.

I do believe that the persons having this phone number before me had considerable debt problems. I have already had 5 calls from DIFFERENT bill collectors. Many were those recordings that end with ' if you are ----- -----, please press 1 now'. I have been p0ressing 1, and talking to the caller, having my number taken from their list. They have all been nice and removed the number so far. Figure it is worth the time now, and so far have not had a long wait to get to a real live person. Not doing this would mean continued calls often at inconvenient times.

Today I went down and shopped from the vegetable man. He is a nice older man, with a full size van and boxes of produce. He comes 3 days a week. Prices have been very reasonable. Apples 3/$1, sweet potatoes 5/%1, large black plums 3/$1. I bought those, my fruit bowl is pretty now.

I need to cook for dinner tonight. I have chicken thawed, squash and tomatoes I got from the free table yesterday. I think they were grown here in a tiny strip of land between the back wall of the garden, it is lower than the alley level, and the alley itself. I do know one of the ladies here asked permission and was given rights for that strip for her garden and she shares when she has more than she can eat. At Aldi's I got a cauliflower for 49 cents, so fresh steamed veg and chicken for dinner tonight, with some veg to freeze for later too.

Time for a light lunch, and then to get to cooking.

AGHhhh, just had the 6th phone call in 2 days for the former owner of that number. I remember in years past, a 'used' phone number was retired for 6 months when disconnected, to prevent such as this. But we are running out of numbers, they are turning them over very quickly.

Lunch, anyone want to join me?? Hugs with extras, till later.

Cyn or sombody, can you private message me with what is going on with Jane and Jamie? I have not been to easy in so long, I am out of the loop. thanks in advance, back to reading.

MizT, sorry, I just tried to pm you from my phone but it didn't work properly so just delete my aborted attemp! I will have to leave this to others.

Hi all,
Reading and having responded to Trica's request for news of Jane and Jamie. Busy doing stuff that I've been putting off so must get back to it....love, peace and soul as well as feel better vibes....take care...I care.

I made it to the Pain Management clinic for a meds refill. I only had enough for a few more days. I also hit the grocery store to get all of the supplies for the family get together this weekend. A large assortment of relatives are coming down for the annual golf tournament and picnic. Even Gil's father is coming.... about an 8 hour drive each way.

Oliver is adjusting quickly. He decided that he likes it in the house. Now I just have to teach him to use the dog door.

Morning/evening all.

MizT...welcome to your new home!! I truly hope you find it all that you hoped for.

Heidi..good to hear that Oliver is settling in OK.It must be daunting for him to have all those dogs around. So glad your back has eased a little and the epidural is now closer. Your apple pies made me feel hungry.Where do you get your energy from?

Gail...love the name Galah Gala.I enjoy reading about the renos.The grouting must be almost the last thing to do in the kitchen?

Judy...exciting time for your family at the moment.

Midge..Sydney Harbour must look awesome from a helicopter. I have seen it from a cruise and also landing in a plane but it is too quick to really appreciate its beauty.

I hope those not feeling well are soon much better.
Catch you all again soon.

Thanks Mama for responding to Tricia. And to Gail for trying.
Tricia - what a busy few days you've had but all will settle. Such a good idea to buy the trolley from Aldi.
Heidi - pleased that Oliver has settled.

Hi all. Just a quick hello. Had my family for dinner for Yom Kippur and I am glad that it is over.

Theresa. Sorry I am late but I hope you had a wonderful day.

Tricia, glad you are in you new place. I still have your cell number and will have to call you soon.

Read a few posts but will have to come back and read the rest. See you all soon.